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General Motors, BMW to shack up on fuel cell development

Reuters reports that General Motors and BMW are headed toward a partnership that may see the two automakers join forces on the creation of a fuel cell system. German business magazine Wirtschafts Woche has cited unnamed industry sources as saying talks between the companies are already quite advanced, and that the duo may formalize the agreement soon.

GM has already established itself as an industry authority on fuel cell vehicles, and BMW is likely hoping to leverage some of that knowledge into its own products. GM has refused to comment on the partnership, though BMW has said that the two companies are "speaking about various future technologies."

The German automaker seems to be on the equivalent of a green-tech land grab. Earlier this month, the company announced a similar partnership with Toyota designed to foster collaboration toward new green technology.

We aren't surprised to see automakers joining forces on green tech. Research and development can be costly, and it only makes sense to spread that financial burden out amongst as many collaborators as possible.

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You can only charge at home if you live in an independent house. If you live in an apartment complex (most people around the world live in apartments or houses with multiple families occupying it), then it becomes far more complex to charge your EV overnight. Metered plug points become necessary. And if a majority of the population use EVs, then the load on the apartment complexes electricity distribution system becomes enormous. Also, you do get tethered to your apartment or house.
With fuel cells, you need only refill your car once every few days (depending on usage) and you can do it in a few minutes at the pumps that you can stop by.
The logistics of getting a few pumps to upgrade to support hydrogen refuelling is far easier than getting the apartment complexes converted.
Also, hydrogen can be obtained from various sources - even if very energy intensive process such as electrolysis is to be used to get the hygrogen, it can be generated using energy which is currently wasted - example: using biogas from sewage, using the energy from pressure pads on highways, shopping malls etc.

Dan is an idiot who doesn't know how to make an argument that might actually convince someone, but some of his points are technically correct. Approximately 95% of current hydrogen production comes from steam-reformation of fossil fuels, compared to about 70% of current American electrical production coming from fossil fuels. I don't think there is any major first world country that depends on fossil fuels for more than 95% of its electrical needs.
While it is possible to make hydrogen by electrolyzing water, that is far less efficient than using that electricity to charge a battery. The electrolyzing part alone wastes about 50% the energy, and then you have to compress or liquify the hydrogen, transport it, and then recombine it with oxygen in the fuel cell, all steps that use energy. Merely sending electricity down the grid, to charge batteries, and then discharging the batteries ends up being close to 90% efficient.
Also, fuel cells & a hydrogen storage system suitable for automotive use are currently costs a lot more than a big pack of batteries. And while it wouldn't be that hard to make a system to electrolyze water at home, and then compress it for use in a vehicle, said system would end up costing a lot more than a home charger, and be a lot less efficient.
Fast charging systems are making good progress, and putting up fast chargers everywhere will require a lot less money than building an equivalent network of hydrogen fuel stations, since we already have a pretty good electrical grid that reaches almost everywhere people want to go.
Now Dan, since I took your points and elaborated on them in a rational manner, might I suggest you take some debate or rhetoric classes, so you can argue your points without sound like a raving lunatic.

I am excited for Fuel Cell vehicles, current vehicular dynamics with the potential for solar powered electrolysis. I am all for a greener road ahead, but I don't want to drive an appliance, and it seems that appliances are being pushed harder and harder on us.

It is good to see that the auto majors are finally starting to pay more attention to fuel cells. Fuel cells have the huge advantage that they can be refilled quickly and still support ranges far higher than can be supported by EVs.
Apart from that, fuel cells allow for the current fuel pump stations to upgrade their facility to store and supply hydrogen. It is far easier to get a few 1000 fuel pumps upgraded to support hydrogen supplies than it is to refit the parking lots of millions of houses and apartment complexes around the country to support metered plug points for EVs to be charged overnight.

I hope this leads to hydrogen cars because that's really the best alternative. No batteries needed and water comes out of the exhaust. The funny thing is i read that they have been around since the 1970's. Go figure.

Any sanely designed fuel cell vehicles are still going to have batteries, just rather small ones, to act as a buffer for the fuel cells, and to allow for regenerative braking. And while water is to the only by-product of combing hydrogen and oxygen in a fuel, to get the hydrogen you need to either rip it from fossil fuels or water; ripping it from fossil fuels still produces CO2 and other pollutants, and electrolyzing water uses at least twice as much electricity as charging a battery with the same storage capacity.